


Chihiro's twin? What?

by Galaxyboi489



Category: Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi | Spirited Away
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-31
Updated: 2020-05-31
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:47:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24473011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Galaxyboi489/pseuds/Galaxyboi489
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

The long car ride was seriously getting on my nerves. We just had to move didn't we? We couldn't have stayed in our old town? I missed my friends and my old school.

"Look there's your new school." My mom said. I glanced over and rolled my eyes as Chihiro stuck her tongue out at it. Chihiro is my twin sister, we're identical twins but different in every other way. My hair is longer and while she always has hers up mine is always down. I also like dark colors while Chihiro likes bright colors.

Other than those details our personalities are polar opposites. I like to sit down and listen to music or read but Chihiro likes to draw and paint. Not only that but I like to explore and go on adventures while Chihiro likes to cling and shout.

"Satoshi." Chihiro said.

"Chihiro." I said without looking up from my book.

"You'll stay with me during the first couple day's right?" She said in a small voice that sounded like she was about to cry.

I looked her straight in the eye and said. "Yes I will." She smiled and I looked at her flowers. "You better hope we get there soon because you're flowers look bad." She started to complain to mom and I picked up my own bouquet. Instead of getting me real flowers that would shrivel up and die my friends got me metal flowers that would live forever.

We stopped on a small dirt road. Our parents started arguing and Chihiro and I looked out the window. "What are those small stone houses?" I asked.

"They're shrines." Mom said. "Some people say little spirits live there."

I nodded and kept looking at them. For some reason spirits always fascinated me and to see shrines right in front of me was exciting.

The car started racing down the bumpy road. I accidently ripped out the page in my book where I wrote my name. Cursing quietly I stuffed it in my pocket. I would tape it back in when we got to the house.

The car suddenly stopped and I flew into the back of dad's seat face first. Chihiro giggled while I looked at where we stopped. There was a statue that looked like a frog and a dark tunnel. I opened my door and stepped out. I couldn't stop staring at the tunnel.

We were all standing in front of it when Chihiro voiced my thoughts. "The wind's pulling us in." I nodded silently. This place was taking my breath away.

We started walking through the tunnel and we eventually came to a square room. There was an archway like the one we came through on one side and there were three tunnels where we just came from. There was also a fountain with a stain glass window. It had a certain vibe that pulled me in.

We walked in and mom and dad were looking around. They started to walk through the archway on the other side of the room.

Chihiro started to panic then. "I thought we were just going to take a look." I started to follow them and Chihiro grabbed my arm. "Satoshi, we shouldn't be here."

Before I could say anything the wind started blowing roughly and the building started moaning. I grabbed Chihiro's arm and started to pull her through. "I don't think we have much of a choice here Chihiro."

She nodded and clung to me as we walked. Normally I hated it when she clung to me but right now I needed someone to hold onto me. I felt like we just drifted out of our world.

We walked across a grassy field and a line of rocks. Dad said they were planning to put a river here. We were crossing it when dad spoke up. "Do you smell that?" He asked. "Maybe this place isn't abandoned after all."

We were having trouble walking over the stones but mom and dad kept walking. "Hey Satoshi, could you put my card in your pocket? I don't want to lose it." I grabbed it and stuffed it with the page from my book.

The stone steps just kept going on and on. There were restaurants going along the length of both sides of the steps. "Why are there so many restraints?" I asked. Mom and dad weren't listening; they were too busy following their noses.

Once they found the food they started stuffing their faces. "I'm going to walk around." I told Chihiro, and then I frowned. "Don't eat anything." She nodded and I knew she felt the bad vibe I felt.

I walked up the rest of the steps when I saw it. It was a huge red building with a green roof. There was gold on it and a factory smoke tower. "A bathhouse." I said when I recognized it.

I heard the train so I looked over the railing to see it going under the train. I ran across to see the train going across the water. That was when I saw him. He looked taller than me with dark green hair and light green eyes. He was wearing a white tunic with blue underneath it.

"What are you doing here?" he asked. "You shouldn't be here." He looked back to see the lanterns lighting. "You have to go. Get out of here. Now. Get across the river."

I started running down the steps but I couldn't find Chihiro. "Guys." I shouted. I started to panic and I kept shouting. I ran down to the frog statue we passed earlier and I ran into a river. "What?" I gasped before running back. "This can't be happening."

There was a boat coming across from a town that wasn't there before. That's when I noticed something scary. I was see through.

I was becoming see through. This couldn't be happening, this is impossible. The boat stopped and a variety of weird beings started to get off. "This is completely insane." I muttered. The creatures started to look at me so I ran. I still needed to find my family.

I huddled against a wall and started to cry. I don't normally cry but this was not a normal time.

I felt something touch me and I looked up to see the boy from earlier. I knew I shouldn't be thinking it but this guy was cuter up close. "Don't be afraid." He whispered. "I just want to help you."

I started shaking my head and backing away. I was scared and this guy was part of the reason I was scared. "Open your mouth and eat this. You have to eat some food from this world or you'll disappear." He said. He had a red berry in his hand.

I wanted to trust him, something in my head was telling me too, but I didn't know him. "No." I said, flinging my arms out to push him away. My arms went through him.

"Don't worry. It won't turn you into a pig." I opened my mouth to ask what he meant but he stuffed the berry into my mouth. "Chew it and swallow." I didn't want to but the berry tasted really good.

"There you go. You're all better." He said with a smile. He lifted his hand so his palm was facing me. "See for yourself."

I reached out and touched his hand. I didn't know where my family was so being near someone was nice. "You see?" He said. "Now let's go." He said standing up.

"Wait." I said. "What happened to my parents and my sister?"

He looked sad but he told me the truth. "The food you're parents ate turned them into pigs and I'm not sure where your sister is but I promise you I'll find out." He said. I nodded, trying not to cry. He looked up and glared before he crouched in front of me with his hand on the wall. "Don't move." He whispered. I had never been this close to a guy before but I was too scared to appreciate it.

He kept glaring at the sky while pulling me closer to him. There was a bird above us and I guess he was trying to hide me from it. "That birds looking for you." He said while standing up. "You've got to get out of here."

I tried to pull myself up with his hand but I couldn't stand. My legs were stuck. "My legs. I can't stand up." I tried harder to pull myself up. "Help, what do I do." I said, starting to panic.

He crouched down next to me and said. "Calm down and take a deep breath." He said. While I was doing that he put his hand on my leg and said. "In the name of the wind and water within me, unbind her." His palm started to glow and I felt my legs come up. "Get up." He said roughly, pulling me up.

Then we started running. If he wasn't holding my hand I doubt I could have kept up with him. He put his hand out and the door opened in front of us. It was a wooden room with rocks, jars, and dead fish in it. Then we ran through a freezer and finally we ran through a room full of pig pens. It made me want to cry. My parents could have been in there and so could Chihiro but I didn't know where any of them were.

We stopped in front of a gate and he said some weird words with his hand on my forehead. "It's an invisibility spell." He said. "Just hold onto my arm and stay behind me and they won't see anything." We started to walk through the gate when he said. "You have to hold your breath while we cross the bridge, even the tiniest breath will break the spell and then everyone will see you."

I nodded and stayed behind him. We passed some frog looking creatures that were welcoming everyone. "I'm back from my mission." He said.

The frogs bowed and said. "Welcome back. Welcome back master Haku." Haku. So that was his name. I had followed this boy around all night and I just found out his name.

"Take a deep breath." He said while I listened to him. "Hold it." He said. I put my hand over my mouth to control myself. "Hang on. Almost there." Haku said.

Just then a frog jumped in front of us saying. "Master Haku. Where you been?" I gasped and the frog stared at me. "A human?"

Haku put his hand out and the frog was incased in a black bubble. "Let's go." He said. We flew over the ground and through a small doorway behind the greeters. He dragged me to the back corner of a garden. There was a long window and people were running around inside shouting Haku's name.

"They know you're here." He said.

"I'm sorry." I said quietly.

"No Satoshi, you did very well. Listen carefully to what I tell you to do. You can't stay here, you'll get caught and you won't be able to find your sister or save your parents. I'll create a diversion while you escape." I grabbed his shirt tightly. I didn't want to be alone. "This is what you have to do." He put his hand on my forehead and I started seeing images. "When things quiet down go out the back door and down the steps to the boiler room. There you'll find Kamaji. Ask him for work because that's the only way you can stay here. Understand?" I nodded. "I have to go now but remember what I said."

He walked inside and started talking to some of the people. I sat there huddled in the garden and then I started walking.


	2. Chapter 2

I slipped out the door quietly. I wasn't sure if anyone was around but I didn't want to get caught. I slid over to the edge where the stairs started. They were just some boards nailed together. There wasn't even a railing. If I slipped I would fall down into open air. I stood right next to one side so I could touch the wall. I started to walk down slowly.

The stairs were solid but then one snapped under me. I slid a couple stairs before I got my footing. After that I just started running. I was scared and I felt like I would fall at any moment. I barely stopped myself from running into a wall. I was standing there catching my breath when a window opened.

There was a frog with a mustache smoking a cigarette. The frog had a French mustache and in different circumstances I would've laughed. I quietly slid around the corner. There were still another flight of steps but these ones were more solid.

I quickly ran down the steps and looked around. There was a door with peeling green paint on it. I saw it when Haku showed me those images. The door was heavy so it took two hands to open it. I walked in and closed the door behind me. It was a dark room. There were thick pipes running up the right wall and there were wheels on them to open them up.

There was a light at the end with a bunch of shadows on the wall so I walked towards them. There was a man sitting in a little wooden cubicle crushing something in a bowl. There were a bunch of little black things carrying coal to the boiler. The man looked normal until he unfurled more arms. This guy had six arms.

I stood there in shock for a minute. The man hit a hammer on a wheel attached to his cubicle and the little black things ran into holes in the walls. I walked the couple feet to the lip of the indent in the floor. "Excuse me. Hello." I said to the man. He continued working. He looked at me and drank out of a tea pot. "Hello." I said once more. I walked closer to him. "Are you Kamaji?"

He stopped working and looked down at me. "Haku told me to come here and ask to work here. Can I have a job please?"

There was a ding and a bunch of tablets fell down. "Four bath tokens at once." He said. He started banging the hammer on the wheel again. "Come on get to work you little runts." He shouted. "Yeah I'm Kamaji. Slave to the boiler that heats the baths. Move it you stupid soot balls."

"Please I really need a job." I asked once more.

He scowled. "I don't need any workers. This place is full of soot so I just cast a spell and I have all the workers I need. Get a move on now." The little soot balls started moving again. I jumped up on the platform so I wasn't in the way. I ducked when Kamaji started to move his arm towards me.

One soot ball had a piece of coal that was too heavy for him. It's arms gave out and it was trapped under the coal. I felt bad so I reached down and grabbed the piece. The soot started to work again and I was left with a piece of coal. I didn't know what to do with it so I walked over to the boiler and threw it in. I quickly stepped out of the way after that.

Another soot ball dropped its coal on itself. I stared at it in confusion. The other soot balls did it too and soon there was a huge pile around my feet. Kamaji stopped working and banged his hammer. "Hey you runts. You want to turn back into soot? And you, back off you can't just take someone else's job. If they don't work the spell wears off and they turn back into soot. There's no work for you here, got it? Try somewhere else."

The soot balls kept piling up at my feet and there was a sliding noise and a woman's voice saying. "Chowtime." The soot balls ran over and I worked my way out of the pile of coal. The woman was feeding the soot balls sprinkles when she noticed me. "A human." She cried. "You're in trouble. You're the one everyone's been looking for."

"She's my granddaughter." Kamaji said. "She says she wants to work here. I have all the help I need. Will you take her to see Yubaba? She's a tough little girl. I think she can handle it."

"No way." The woman said. "I'm not going to risk my life."

"Not even for a roasted newt?" kamaji said. The girl snatched it and said. "Come on." I left my shoes with the soot balls. The woman led me out of the room after I thanked Kamaji. She led me to a wooden elevator that went up a bunch of floors.

The place was wooden with lots of gold and red color. The girl looked around. I knew we weren't supposed to be here. I followed closely behind her and we went up a different elevator. When we stopped there was some white thing there. The woman said it was the radish spirit and to not look at him.

When we got to the next elevator there were a bunch of beings coming out. The woman pushed me in and told me to pull the lever. I did and it went up. The radish spirit took up most of the elevator but I didn't look at him. The elevator finally stopped and I bowed to the spirit after I got out.

"Well here goes nothing." I said before I walked forward. I just had to find Yubaba now.

There was a huge stone room with two ornate red doors on one wall. There was a net of gold above each. There were also some huge empty vases decorating the place. It was cold and it made me feel really small.

There was an insignia of a bird on the wall between the doors. I don't know why but I went towards the door on the right. When I tried to open it the knocker started talking to me. "Aren't you even going to knock?" It asked before its eyes rolled all the way backwards. "You're the most pathetic little girl I've ever seen." It said. I glared at it.

There was a click and a series of doors opened showing me a set of rooms that were just tacky. I stood there staring before a voice said. "Well, come in." I took a deep breath to steady myself but I guess I took too long. The voice said, "I said come in."

Then I was dragged forward. It felt like a hand was grabbing my shirt and pulling me forward. The doors closed behind me when I was pulled through them. When the invisible hand let me go I fell on my face into a somersault in an office. I looked up and saw Chihiro sitting in one of the chairs unconscious.

"Chihiro." I cried running to her. She looked so pale but she still had a pulse. "Come on Chihiro. Wake up." I said shaking her.

I heard a laugh and I looked over at a woman. She was in an ugly blue dress and she had a huge pink blister on her forehead. She had huge, deep wrinkles all over her face. "She won't wake up until I let her." The woman said. "Now, what should I do with you? I could turn you into a pig like your parents or I could make you sleep until you starve like your sister." She smirked and looked at me.

I didn't know what to do. She ran the bathhouse, I knew that much. I looked around and I saw that she had huge gems on her fingers and she was counting bags of money. When she saw me looking she shut the lid of the box the money was in. I started feeling in my pockets and I found my wallet. "Is human money worth anything here?"

Her eyes widened and she leaned forward. The gleam in her eye told me this was worth a lot. "How much is there?" I quickly counted and said. "$40.75" She reached for it and I pulled it back.

"If you want this," I said holding it out. "You have to wake up my sister."

The woman nodded and snapped her fingers. Chihiro started moving and I went over to her. "Chihiro? Are you ok?"

"Satoshi?" She said. She sounded really groggy and I wondered how long she had been asleep. "Where am I?"

"A bathhouse." I said. "Don't worry. Everything is going to be fine." I smiled to make my statement more believable.

The woman laughed and shook her head. "Give me my money now." She said menacingly. I handed it over. I offered and she accepted. "Now what kind of animal would you like to be?"

I froze. I didn't know how to get out of this one. "How about you getting two more workers who will do any job you say?" I said weakly.

She laughed. "I don't need two weak humans stinking up my bathhouse. This is where the spirits come to replenish themselves. Humans are what wreck them in the first place."

Chihiro was wide awake now and she met my worried glance. She took her way out then. "Please, we really want to work here." She screamed.

Yubaba glared at her and flew over her desk making everything shake and fly around. "I don't need two weak spoiled lazy crybaby people. I have plenty of workers already. You two would just mess this place up and I don't need that."

"Please." Chihiro screamed again. She was still sitting in the chair she woke up in. Then there was a huge cry. The entire room was shaking and a huge baby's foot broke through the door. Yubaba ran over and tried to dismiss us while she tried to calm her baby. Chihiro and I started to yell more and Yubaba made a deal. "Ok, I'll give you jobs f you just be quiet."

We shut up and soon enough papers and pens started floating towards us. "Sign your name away and I'll set you up with jobs." We nodded and knelt by the fireplace so we could sign. Yubaba fixed her office by waving her hand away, muttering the entire time.

The papers flew out of our hands and Yubaba sucked some of the letters into her hand. "Satoshi and Chihiro. Such lovely names and now they're mine. Your new names are Sen and Fau. Got that? Answer me Sen and Fau."

"Yes ma'am." We said together.

"You called for me." I heard a familiar voice say. I looked over and saw Haku.

"These girls signed contracts. Get them set up with jobs." Yubaba said, dismissing us.

"Right." He said, turning to look at us. "What are your names?"

We looked at each other. "I'm Sa- oh. I'm Fau and this is my sister Sen."

"Ok. Fau and Sen. Follow me." He turned around and we started to follow him. Time to start our new lives.


	3. Chapter 3

We followed Haku in silence until we got in an elevator. I wanted to thank him but I wasn't sure how. I turned to him and said. "Haku. Than-"

"Don't talk to me." He said coldly. "And address me as Master Haku." I frowned and glared at him. All I wanted to do was thank him and he was acting like an entirely different person. Sen looked at me but I just shook my head.

We followed Haku down a flight of stairs. There were a bunch of people and frog creatures staring at us and whispering.

"I don't care if Yubaba gets angry at us." The man at the counter said. "We're not taking humans."

"They're already under contract." Haku said calmly. Everyone started whispering.

"We promise to work very hard." Sen said. I bowed with her.

"We're not going to take them in our department." "They'll stink up the whole place." The women behind us were saying.

"Three days of eating our food and there smell will go away." Haku said. I sniffed my hair because I didn't think we smelled that bad. "And if they don't work hard roast them, boil them. Do whatever you want." The people around us started muttering. "Now get back to work. Where is Lin?"

The woman who helped me spoke up then. "What? Don't you dump them on me."

"You said you wanted an assistant." Haku said.

The guys behind the counter started laughing at her. I guess it was truly horrible to get stuck with a human. "Sen, Fau get going." Haku snapped. Sen immediately said alright and walked off but I glared at Haku for a moment. His eyes seemed to change a little, they got softer. Then he snapped back into himself and walked off.

"Why are you picking on me? You owe me one Haku." Lin said as she led us off. We walked around the corner. I was focusing on this pain in my stomach when Lin turned to us. "I can't believe you pulled it off." She said to me. Sen was confused but I just smiled. "I was really worried. Now keep on your toes and if either of you need anything ask me. Kay?" Lin looked at Sen for a moment before asking. "What's wrong?"

I turned to her and saw that Sen looked pale. "I don't feel so good." I put my hand on her arm and we looked at each other for a second. She was feeling the same sickness I was feeling.

We continued walking until we got to a huge bedroom. Lin led us inside and opened a closet. "This is our room. A little food and some sleep and you'll be fine." She started looking through some piles. "These are your pants." She said. They were pink and I glared at them. "It'll be hard to find shirts since you're both so puny." She said.

"Lin." I said. "Is there more than one Haku here?"

She snorted. "Two Haku's? I can barely stand one. He's Yubaba's henchman, don't trust anything he says."

While Lin was digging through the piles my stomach started to really hurt, Sen must have felt it to because she started whimpering and crouched down. "Ah. Here you go." Lin said. She crouched down next to Sen and rubbed her back.

We went to sleep soon after but I couldn't fall asleep. My stomach really hurt and I didn't know why. I hated feeling like this but I didn't know what to do. I heard the door open so I shut my eyes and pretend to fall asleep. I felt a hand on my arm through my blanket. "Meet me at the bridge. I'll take you to see your parents." I heard Haku say.

As soon as I heard the door close I shot up. Sen looked at me and I held a finger up to my lips. I stood up and got dressed, motioning for her to do the same. We snuck into the hallway and down to Kamaji's workshop. I looked around for my shoes but I couldn't find them. The soot balls walked out with them and I smiled. "Thanks." I said. I gave them to Sen and started to lead her out. I was used to going barefoot.

When we got to the bridge Sen stopped to stare at something. I didn't see anything so I took her hand and said. "Come on." Haku was waiting for us on the other side.

His eyes were soft and I could tell he really wanted to help us for some reason. "Follow me." He said. We started walking through the gardens and Haku gave us some instructions. "You don't have much time. If you're found here you'll be turned into pigs yourself." We walked out of the garden into a hill with buildings at the bottom. "You must never come here without me. Do you understand?"

"We understand." I said quickly. Haku led us into one of the buildings and gestured to a pen with two pigs in it. Sen ran to it and started shouting at them. I just stood there and looked at them. I didn't move and Haku put his hand on my arm. I just shook my head and walked out. I sat next to a bush and started crying. I'm not sure why but I just had to.

Haku knelt next to me and pulled a bundle out of his tunic. "Here. These are your clothes and you sister's shoes. I took them before Yubaba destroyed them." I took them and tried to smile at him. Then I felt something in the pocket. It was the card and the page from my book. "Satoshi? Chihiro? Those are our names aren't they?"

Haku nodded. "That's how Yubaba controls people, by stealing their names. So keep them close and hidden." I nodded and put them back in the pocket. "If you completely forget your name you'll never go home. I've tried everything to remember mine."

I put my hand on Haku's knee. "I'm sorry." I said. He smiled and Chihiro walked out.

Haku pulled some food out and handed some to each of us. "I put a spell on it to give you strength." He said. While we were eating I gave Chihiro her clothes and card back. Then we started walking back. We still had work.

I woke up in the boiler room next to Chihiro a couple hours later. Kamaji was already working so I shook her shoulder and we ran back to our room. Kamaji promised to keep our stuff safe for us.

I couldn't stop thinking about Haku. When we were in the bathhouse his eyes were like stone but when he was with me his eyes were softer. He was kinder and I couldn't stop thinking about him.

The sky was cloudy and it smelled like rain was coming soon. Even though it was dark out everyone was acting like it was the morning. We were helping Lin clean up all the blankets. I was folding them and then Chihiro would give them to Lin who put them in the cabinet.

After that we had to scrub the floors. It was obvious Chihiro and I didn't work much but I had years of sports on my side while Chihiro didn't. Then a man came up to us. "Lin, Sen, and Fau you get the big tub today."

Lin sucked in a breath and looked disgusted. "What? Hey that's frog work." She said angrily.

The man didn't really care. "Orders from the top, so quit your complaining."

We didn't really understand what the big deal was but everyone was laughing at us. The big tub couldn't be that bad. Chihiro went to dump the dirty water while Lin and I got the supplies. There were so many different brushes that I didn't know where to start. Luckily Lin explained them all to me.

The other girls made jokes about us and I was really starting to dread this. Chihiro was still confused but I knew that if they made this much of a fuss about it the big tub was really bad.

I turned out to be right. The tub was huge. It was filled with filthy water and the ground had straw and muck all over it. I couldn't even tell what color the floor was. "Those jerks, they haven't cleaned this tub in months." Lin said.

Chihiro slipped walking in and I glared at the frogs when they laughed. We had to get all the straw off the floor so we used a push broom. Then we drained the water. It had at least an inch of filth caked onto it.

"We only use this tub for our really filthy guests." Lin said. We stood in it with brushes and scrubbed the sides with all our strength. My arms felt like jello after a couple minutes. "Ugh, disgusting. It's going to take days to get this sludge off." I groaned at the thought of doing this for a couple more days.

"Lin, Sen, Fau you've got some customers coming." A man said from the doorway.

"Wait give us a minute. This is clearly harassment." Lin said throwing her brush down. She went towards Chihiro and started pushing her up. "We'll have to soak it off. Get an herbal soap token from the foreman."

Chihiro fell from the tub and started to walk away when she asked. "What's a foreman?"

Lin pulled herself from the tub and reached down to help me. My stomach growled when I stood up. Lin laughed and said. "After we fill the tub up I'll go and get some food."

Just then Chihiro walked back in with a little red tablet in her hand. Lin walked over to the wall and tapped it opening a small doorway. She took the tablet and said. "Wow Sen, you got a good one." She clipped it onto a string and tugged it. "It goes straight to kamaji who then sends us our water."

Just then a plank of wood fell from the wall and hovered over the tub. It had space so the water could come through. "You pull on this to get the water flowing." Lin said. Chihiro walked up and pulled it which made water pour out. She, being the klutz she is, slipped. "Yank it again to stop the water. I'm going to get some breakfast."

I sat down against the wall while Chihiro waited for the tub to fill. We sat in a comfortable silence until some guy showed up in the corner. He had a black cloak on with a white mask that had a smiley face. I didn't know him but it seemed Chihiro did. "Sen, who is this?"

"I don't know but he's the one who gave me the soap token." She said getting down from the tub. I got up onto the rim and ignored their conversation. The tub would be full any minute. I stopped the water and Yubaba called us.

When we got to the front a giant creature of muck was walking in. It smelled so bad I couldn't move. He offered money and Yubaba made me take it. I shivered and we led him to the bath. When he got in the bath he sent muck and horrible smell all over the place. It was waist high and we couldn't breathe.

Chihiro managed to save a basket of water tokens and the blob was looking at us in sadness. "What do we do?" She asked me.

"Let's refill the tub. It might get some of the gunk off." I said back. Chihiro managed to walk over to the flap and clip a tablet on. I went to get a brush when I heard a splash.

Chihiro fell in the tub and she wasn't coming up.

The water was flooding the room but I tried to get over to her as fast as I could. There was no way I was letting my sister drown. Before I got to the tub the muck monster picked her up and held her to its chest. "Let her go." I shouted.

"I think he needs help. It feels like there's a thorn in his side." She shouted at me.

"A thorn?" I said in confusion. What spirit had a thorn in it?

Yubaba jumped down from the balcony and made a rope appear. "Here, tie this off." She shouted throwing it at us. Chihiro tried put the water was so strong it took the two of us to do it. The other employees lined up behind us and grabbed on to the rope.

Everyone was pulling with all their strength and we all fell backwards slightly. A bike was coming out of the muck. We kept pulling and more junk came out, making everyone other then Chihiro fall back. She pulled the last of the junk out and a sigh was heard.

Water came pouring out of the bath and it engulfed Chihiro. I started shouting her name. My sister was all I had left. A mask came out of the water and said, "Well done."

The spirit put her down and then it left.

I didn't know much about this bathhouse but it seemed to me that that was a pretty eventful first day.


	4. Chapter 4

After the river spirit left there was a huge celebration. Chihiro's work earned the bathhouse loads of money. Later on we were sitting on the balcony looking over the water.

"Fau," Chihiro said quietly.

"Sen," I said back just as quietly. We both smiled at our little game. No matter what world we were in we were still sisters.

"The river spirit gave me this after I helped him." She said, handing me a small ball of something like mud.

I held it in my hand and sniffed it. "It smells like that stuff mom gives us when we're sick." I said. That stuff always smelled horrible.

Her eyes widened. "Medicine." She said breathlessly. I didn't know what the big deal was but I gave the ball back.

Just then Lin sat down next to us. "Here, I swiped you guys some dumplings." I smiled and took the bowl from her. I love dumplings! "What a day." She said before getting comfortable.

I hesitated when I bit into the dumpling. I didn't see Haku with everyone else. "Hey Lin, where's Haku?"

She groaned. "Not Haku again." I blushed at that. I just couldn't stop thinking about him. "He just disappears sometimes. Rumor has it, he runs around doing Yubaba's dirty work." I frowned at that.

"Really?" I asked. I didn't get an answer though. It was time for the lights to go off. So, the three of us sat there and watched the sunrise.

Chihiro woke me up sometime during the day. "Everybody's gone." She whispered. I rolled over and tried to go back to sleep but she stopped me. "I had a dream. I think the river spirit gave me the medicine because it will help mom and dad." I shot straight up at this and banged our foreheads together.

We sat there cringing in pain until we started laughing. This situation was so stupid that we had to laugh. I rubbed my eyes and pulled my shirt on. "So we wait until Haku comes back and go to give mom and dad the medicine." I said calmly.

"Why can't we go now?" She asked.

I sighed. "Remember what Haku said?" She shook her head. "We can't go down there without him, we promised. Besides, he said if Yubaba found us there she'll turn us into pigs."

She nodded and we both went out onto the balcony. "It really is the sea." I whispered quietly.

"Fau," I looked at her. "Do you remember when I was little and I fell into the river reaching for my shoe?" I nodded. She almost drowned that day. "When I'm around Haku I get the same feelings I got when I was around that river."

My eyes widened. He said he didn't remember his name or his past. Could it be possible…?

"Kamaji lit the boiler already." Chihiro said. I looked up and saw smoke. Together we walked downstairs to see everyone running around.

"Hey Sen, Fau." Lin said. "I was just about to wake you. Look." She said holding up a piece of gold. "It's real gold. There's a new guest here who's loaded. He's giving gold away by the handfuls." She said happily.

"Who's the guest?" Chihiro asked.

"Who care?" Lin said walking away. "Come one, before Yubaba wakes up."

"I think I'm going to look for Haku." I said. Chihiro nodded. She really wanted to see if the medicine would work.

"Oh, stop worrying about Haku. Let's go get some gold." Then Lin ran off with some other girls to get some more gold.

I don't know why but we went back to the balcony. "Where is Haku?" I whispered. I had this really bad feeling in my chest. He always made me get funny feelings in my chest. I blinked; mom always said that's what a special boy would do.

I was pulled out of my thoughts when Chihiro gasped. Haku was in his dragon form flying over the water. A bunch of white birds were attacking him and he was cut all over. He went underwater and then started flying up the wall. We flinched back when he flew past the balcony but then we started shouting at him.

I opened the room's door while Chihiro was screaming. We had to get him away from those birds. Haku sped past and threw a wall while Chihiro closed the windows. She was screaming and trying to get the birds away from her.

"Haku." I said. He was wrestling with the pillows he crashed into. There was blood everywhere. He was writhing like he was in pain and blood was dripping out of his mouth.

"Those paper things are gone." Chihiro said. "You're bleeding." I stood next to her and we looked at him. He looked wild and feral, like he was ready to attack.

He went flying out the window, splattering blood everywhere. I ran to look and he ran into the wall. I flinched at that and saw him go into the top window. "I've got to get there before he bleeds to death." I said before running off.

We ran up the stairs and everyone was blocking the way. There was an aisle between all the people and everyone started cheering when a huge black figure walked between them. Chihiro couldn't get through the crowd so she told me to keep going.

I ran to the elevator but a frog guy stopped me. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Upstairs." I said quickly. I had to hurry.

"No you're not." The guy said meanly. That's when he saw my hand. He screamed and pushed me away.

I ran towards the stairs but I ran into the guest. That's when Chihiro knocked into me. He started filling his hands up with gold and offering it to her. "No thanks." She said. "We really have to go."

Then we ran. I was just hoping we got there in time.

We ran through the hallways but the only way to go up was the elevator and we couldn't get to it. We finally got stuck at a dead end with a window. I opened it u and looked outside. Here was a ladder leading up. "Come on, Sen." I said climbing out.

As soon as I put my foot down I started to slip and Chihiro was right behind me. We were lucky we didn't fall off the roof. We climbed up but the only way to get to the ladder was to walk over a pipe. "Fau, I don't think it will hold us both."

We looked at each other. We had always done everything together but now we had to separate. "You go get Haku. I'll go back and try to meet you there." She started to walk back but then turned around. "Here take this." She handed me the medicine. I started to protest but she cut me off. "Use some on Haku and we can use the rest on mom and dad."

I smiled and hugged her. For some reason I couldn't lose Haku and she understood that. We separated and turned the opposite way. The pipe was old and creaky. I rolled up my pant legs and tied my shirt tight. I took a deep breath and put my foot down.

The pipe started to give almost immediately so I started running. The pipe was coming off the wall and collapsing on itself. I reached the ladder as soon as possible and held on for dear life. I huddled against the ladder for a minute. I had always hated heights and yet here I was dangling off a ladder at least 7 stories in the air for some guy I barely knew.

I sighed and steeled my nerves. I didn't know Haku very well but I knew he was important to me. Climbing the ladder wasn't that hard, I just couldn't look down without feeling sick and dizzy. Heights weren't that bad but the feeling that I could fall was terrifying. I closed my eyes and breathed for a second but I felt a tap on my shoulder. I looked over and saw a dark shape with Yubaba's hair flying towards me. I gasped, Yubaba was back.

I started climbing as fast as I could then I huddled on a window sill. The window was locked but I kept banging on it with my arm. "I don't have time for this." I whispered. I turned around and started throwing my whole body against the window.

The window finally opened and I landed on my back in a bathroom. I got up and started running. I didn't know where I was but I had to find Haku and give him the medicine. I ended up in a green padded room with pillows, toys and an oversized bed in it.

I started walking when I heard Yubaba's voice. She said something about a no face and not eating anyone else. "Eww. Haku is bleeding all over the carpet. Get him out of here. He'll be dead soon anyway." Then she turned and started walking towards me. I jumped under the bed and moved some pillows in front of me. I heard Yubaba talking and moving some things around. The light went out and I peeked out from under the bed.

Yubaba was gone so I started walking towards her office. I tripped over a toy and landed on the pillows. When they started moving I jumped up and moved away. A giant baby stood up and looked straight at me. "You came in here to make me sick, you bad germ."

The baby could talk. "No, I'm not a germ, I'm a girl. I have to go." I started towards Yubaba's office but the baby grabbed my arm.

"Play with me." He demanded. He started squeezing my arm. "Play with me or I'll break your arm."

I lifted up my bloody palm. "Look! I've got germs." The baby started crying so I ran into the office. Three green heads were pushing Haku towards a hole in front of the fire. "Haku! Get away from him!" I shouted as I ran towards him.

"Get away." I said to the heads as I shooed them. I leaned over Haku and touched his neck. Lifeguard training paid off. "Haku, are you ok? Please do something. Can you hear me?" The heads started making noises and crowded around me so I told them. "Shut your mouths. Get away."

An ugly bird came from behind me and started attacking me. I lifted my arms to guard my face. Get away. Stop it." I shouted. The heads started pushing Haku again so I grabbed onto his neck. "Stop it." I said. The bird was still attacking me and my cheek got cut. A noise alerted me to the fact that the baby had left the nursery. He started threatening me but I couldn't move without losing Haku.

A paper bird came from my shoulder. "What a spoiled little brat." It said. It flew in front of the baby. "Shut your mouth. You're a bit of a porker aren't you?" The bird flew to the ground and a see through version of Yubaba appeared. "Still see through." She commented.

"Mama?" The baby asked.

"You pea brain. Can't you even tell me from your real mother?" With a point of her finger she turned the baby into a mouse. "There now, your body matches your brain. Let's see, what else can we mess with?" She then turned the bird into a puny black bird and the heads into a copy of the baby. "This is our little secret. You tell anyone and I'll rip your little mouth out." She threatened me.

"Who are you?" I asked boldly.

"Zeniba, I'm Yubaba's twin sister. It was nice of you to lead me straight to this dragon's hiding place. Now hand him over to me." She said.

"What do you want with him? He's hurt." I said defensively.

"Too bad." She said. "He stole my magic gold seal and I want it back." She wasn't that nice.

"Haku wouldn't steal. He's a good person." I said. He was my friend and this lady wouldn't insult him like this.

"He became my sister's apprentice to steal her magic secrets and now he's stolen mine. He's a greedy little thief and I want my seal back." She said meanly.

"No." I said. She wouldn't take Haku. The heads started making noise and while she went to take care of them the mouse and bird climbed onto my shoulder.

Haku woke up and cut the paper bird in half. "Ooh. A paper cut." She moaned.

And then, we were falling.

We were falling down a dark tunnel. I grabbed onto the mouse and bird. Then I grabbed Haku's horn and talked into his ear. "Haku." I saw in my mind a river and I could hear it flowing in my ears.

Right before we hit the dirty water with dark spirits coming out of it below Haku woke up. He flew into a tunnel and all the way through a fan. We crash landed in the boiler room right behind Kamaji. Kamaji caught me but Haku was clutching the wall. "Wait, stay back!" Kamaji said. I ignored him and scrambled towards Haku. Blood was still dripping out of his mouth and he was growling at me.

"Haku, what's wrong with you?" I cried.

"This looks serious." Kamaji said as he walked over to me.

Haku collapsed and I fell to my knees next to him. "Come on Haku. Don't give up." I turned to Kamaji. "What do we do? Is he dying?" I asked Kamaji. I didn't know what to do.

"It looks like he's bleeding from the inside." I looked at Kamaji. "Maybe he swallowed something."

I pulled out the medicine Chihiro gave me. "Haku, Sen gave me this. It's a gift from the river spirit. If you eat it it might male you better." I tried to get him to bite it but he wouldn't open his mouth. "Come on Haku. Eat it. Open your mouth." I said in desperation.

Finally I bit a piece off and put the rest in my pocket. I managed to pry open Haku's mouth and I stuck my hand down his throat. I released the medicine as far down his throat as I could. "Now swallow." I said holding his jaw shut. He immediately woke up and started struggling. He was trying to throw the medicine up so I wrapped my arms around his mouth. His tail was banging on the floor and wall while his talons clawed at the ground.

After a moment of this he spit a huge black ball of goo on the floor. "Fau, look there." Kamaji shouted.

I looked and the goo was melting away to reveal a gold thing with a frog on top and a black slug. The slug looked around and then it started running away. "The seal." I whispered. I went to grab it when Kamaji shouted.

"The slug. Get the slug." I grabbed the seal and started chasing the slug. It was fast but it had nowhere to go. Finally I just stepped on it. The slug squished between my toes and I shuddered. I felt like some ghost was breathing down my neck. "You killed it. Those things are bad luck. Now hurry, before it rubs off on you." Kamaji said. I hopped over to him and made a circle with my forefingers and thumbs. He broke it while saying, "Evil be gone."

I looked at the seal and showed it to Kamaji. "Haku stole this from Yubaba's sister."

"Zeniba?" Kamaji asked. He looked shocked. "That's a monogrammed solid gold seal. That's about as powerful as it gets."

Haku was going back to his human form so I went over to him and rolled him onto his back. "Haku! Haku, wake up!" I said, shaking him. He groaned and I almost started crying. He was so pale and he had plenty of bloodstains on him. "Zeniba put a curse on the seal." I told Kamaji.

"That's strong magic. It made him deathly ill." Kamaji said. He set out a blanket and together we moved Haku onto it. I put a pillow under his head and covered him up. I held him up while Kamaji poured water down his throat. Haku was one of the strongest people I knew and it hurt to see him like this.

"That should keep him comfortable." Kamaji said. "Poor Haku, he's had it hard ever since he got here. He just showed up here one day, lost and confused. Then he got mixed up with Yubaba took her on as her apprentice. I told him just to quit, it was too dangerous. Go back home, I told him but for some reason he told me, he had no home to return too. Once Yubaba got control over him his face turned pale and his eyes turned steely, he's never been the same."

So I wasn't stupid. Haku's eyes did soften. "Kamaji, what if I take the gold seal back to Zeniba? I could give her back the seal and apologize to her for Haku. Can you tell me where Zeniba lives?"

"You'd go to Zeniba's?" Kamaji asked, scratching his head. "It might help but she's one dangerous witch." Kamaji warned me.

"Please?" I asked. "Haku helped me before, now I want to help him."

"I know where you can find her but you have to get back on your own." He started looking through some drawers. "May I ask why you are so insistent on helping him?"

I looked down at Haku and grabbed his hand. "I don't know but I can't let him die." He resumed digging through drawers and I went over to the soot balls. "Hey guys. I need my shoes and clothes please." When they went to get them I whispered. "I guess Sen and my parents will have to wait."

Sen came running into the room. "Fau, I need the medicine." I took it out of my pocket and held it out. "Thanks." She said.

"Wait. What's going on?" I called after her.

"I let a bad spirit in and now he's eating people. I'm going to go make him better." She started to walk away when she saw Haku. "Is he ok?" She asked.

"I don't know." I said "I'm going to go and try to make him better." She nodded.

"After I'm done with no face I'll come with you." She said, grabbing her clothes.

As she walked out I called, "Good luck. I'll be outside in a boat. We have to catch the train." She nodded and walked out. I sighed. Hopefully everything would turn out alright.


	5. Chapter 5

I stood there for a moment before kamaji burst out. "Found them." He walked over to me and revealed a strip of tickets. "You can use these. I've been saving them for forty years. Now listen carefully, the train stop you want is called Swamp Bottom. That's where Zeniba lives, it's the sixth stop."

"Swamp Bottom. Sixth stop." I said.

"Make sure you get it right. The train used to run in both directions but these days it's a one way ride." I nodded. "You still want to go?" Kamaji asked in concern.

"I have to." I said and then I smiled. "Besides I can walk back along the tracks." I walked into the next room and got changed back into my regular clothes. I had some time before Chihiro got back so I sat down next to Haku. "Hey Haku, I'm going to help you. I promise." I grabbed his hand and Kamaji looked away to give us some semblance of privacy. "I don't know why but when I saw you all bloody my heart almost stopped. I don't know why but I couldn't let you die." I sighed. "I have to go but I promise you I'll be back and hopefully we can talk more."

Kamaji taught me how to use the boat so I could get us to the train. I was grabbing my shoes and my little friends when I caught sight of Haku. He looked so pale that I leaned down and kissed him on the cheek. Kamaji was staring at me in a way that made me blush. "I'm going to go wait for Sen." I said.

Kamaji just laughed as I walked out. I sat in the boat for about a half hour when Chihiro showed up. She came running down the steps and jumped in the boat. "Move." She shouted at me.

I started to move the lever that acted as the ships motor. It was hard but I managed to talk while doing it. "How'd it go?" I asked.

She sighed. "I fed him the medicine an-" She stopped. "There he is." She said quietly.

I looked back to see a black shape jumping from the bridge. "You can explain later." I heard a splash and looked back. A frog was swimming away. Chihiro had taken of her uniform and was in her regular clothes now. "Did he just eat that frog?" I asked. Before she could say anything I said. "I don't want to know."

She just laughed at me. We got to the train tracks so I got out of the boat. Kamaji said it would float back to the bathhouse. I helped Chihiro out and grabbed my shoes. We walked towards the platform in silence. We stood there for a moment before the train pulled up. The boat was still sitting next to the platform. It looked like it was waiting for something.

The train was pulling up so I counted my tickets. There were four on the strip so I had just the right amount. The black shape was walking towards us and I could see from Chihiro's face that she wanted to help him more. If she wanted him to come with us I was one ticket short.

The train pulled up and the conductor opened the door. He counted us and the tickets. "You're one ticket short." He said.

I looked at Chihiro and then at the monster. She made the decision. "Take him with you. I'll hide in Kamaji's room but he has to get away from here." I almost started crying and I knew she felt the same way.

We hugged and I whispered, "I just got you back. Promise me you'll be safe."

She laughed. "I'll do my best." She was quiet for a moment. "I'll watch over Haku." I blushed and pulled away. "He makes you happy so he's alright in my book."

I laughed and stepped away. I watched her go back to the boat before stepping on the train. We had been through this entire thing together and now we were separating.

I sat down across from the monster and he gave me a sad look. I could tell he felt guilty that Chihiro couldn't come with us. I sat there and stared at him for a minute before getting up and sitting next to him. "My mom told us a story one time." I stopped and looked at him. "It was about a family with eight children. None of the children could get along except for the youngest two."

I stopped and cleared my throat. I wasn't that good at telling stories. "Even with all the fighting, the family was happy and because of that an evil witch got jealous. Her family had died when she was younger and she felt so alone. Seeing the family so happy tore her apart, so she cast a spell. She erased all of their memories and put them in different families all around the world."

"The only ones who ever felt that anything was wrong were the two youngest, Yin and Yang. They were opposites in everything but they got along perfectly. They both felt a whole in their hearts that pulled them toward each other. They lived with this feeling for five years before Yin's family went on a trip. They were in the market when she felt the need to turn around."

"She came face to face with Yang and in that instant the spell was broken. They remembered everything and together they tracked down the rest of their family. It took thirteen long years but in the end they were all together and happy again. That was when the witch came again. She wanted to destroy their family once and for all but Yin and Yang stood in front of them. The witch's spell bounced off them and destroyed her but it hurt the girls."

"They were dying on the ground with their family around them. They grasped each other's hands and the spirits took pity on them. Because they were so strong the spirits brought them into this world. They lived out the rest of eternity together representing how opposites balance each other out."

I sighed and looked down into my lap. "Chihiro and I always balanced each other out but since we've been here we've had to face our own challenges." I felt a tear fall. "I guess we needed this, huh? We can finally get along without each other." The conductor shouted out Swamp Bottom.

I stood up. "Let's go." I said. I couldn't fail, I had to save Haku.

The train pulled up to a platform with a light post on it. There wasn't anyone around and I checked my pocket to make sure I still had the gold seal. I watched the train pull away and then looked at the path leading away from the platform. "I sure hope this is the right place." I muttered.

I started walking with no face right behind me. The little bird and the mouse were walking on the ground so I offered them a ride. It would be quicker. We all stopped and stared when a light started bouncing towards us. The mouse settled on my shoulder by the time it got to us. It was a hand with a long pole with a lantern coming out of it. It bowed and I didn't know what to do other than bow back.

We followed the lamp until it led us to a gateway. The hand wrapped itself around the top and I started walking forward. It was a nice plain looking cottage with smoke rising from the chimney. The door opened before I could knock so I stopped walking. "Come in." I heard a voice say. It was exactly like Yubaba's but more gentle.

I took a deep breath before walking into the homey cottage. "Hello." I called.

"Well hurry up. I don't have all day." The voice said.

No face was still in the doorway so I smiled at him and said. "Come on in." The door swung shut behind him because Zeniba was behind it.

She looked us over before walking away. "So you all made it." She walked over to the fire. "Sit down. I'll make some tea."

I walked over to her quickly. "Excuse me." I said. "Haku stole this from you and I came to return it for him. He's badly hurt and I wanted to ask you to lift your spell so he could get better." I stopped and bowed quickly. "He's very sorry."

She looked at the seal and gasped. "The protection spell is gone." She said.

I rubbed the back of my neck. "I'm sorry. I think it was that black slug I squashed."

Her eyes widened. "Squashed it." She said before bursting out laughing. "That wasn't my slug. My sister put that slug in Haku so she could control him. You squashed it." She was still laughing and I just stood there. I wasn't sure what else to do. "What happened to my spell?" She asked before leading me to the table. "Only love can break it." She said. I blushed and looked away.

"Could you please turn these two back to normal?" I asked. I needed to change the subject before I started talking about this. I wasn't ready to face that subject.

She looked at them closely before replying. "The spell on those two wore off long ago. Change back if you want to." She told them. They shook their heads.

We sat there talking and eating for a little bit. Zeniba told me I had to help Haku by remembering who he was. She went off and taught no face how to knit.

I sat in the chair thinking for a while. I was almost crying because I just couldn't remember. I really wanted to help them. Chihiro said that Haku was like the river she almost drowned in. I could see Haku being a river spirit. I also remembered that the river was rerouted for a housing complex but I just couldn't remember what it was called.

I also remembered what my parents looked like. Haku took us to see them before but I wasn't sure how that was going to help me.

I stood up and started walking towards Granny. "Granny I can't remember anything that would help them. Haku, Chihiro and my parents could already be dead by now and I'm just sitting here." I was trying with all my might not to cry.

"Wait just a little longer." She said. She worked with scissors for a moment before holding something out to me. "It's a necklace." It was a beautiful purple color that shined in the light.

I took it and put it on. "It's beautiful." I said.

"It will help protect you. It was made by the love of your friends who wove the threads together. Here" She said, holding out a smaller band of the same material. "It's a hair tie for your sister."

I took it and slid it on my wrist. The windows started rattling in their frames and Granny told me to go get the door. I went and opened it and I saw Haku in his dragon form. "Haku." I said before running to him. I threw my arms around his head and pressed my forehead to his muzzle. "You're alive." I said, before asking. "How?"

"Ah, that's love for you." Granny walked out of the house. "Haku, I will forgive you for stealing my precious seal but you have to take care of this girl and her sister." She said. Haku nodded his head and I blushed again. Just the thought of Haku watching over us made my heart beat speed up.

No face decided to stay with Granny. I was sad to see him go but it was his decision. I hugged him and he said. "Uh uh uh." I didn't know what that meant but then I heard a voice in my head say, tell Chihiro goodbye for me.

I pulled away and stared at him. I never would have thought no face could do that. "okay." I said before I walked over to Haku.

It took me a couple moments but I managed to get on him. He started flying and we landed in a field a little while away from Zeniba's. I slid off Haku and he turned back into his human form and hugged me. "You're alright?" He asked.

I giggled. "I'm fine. Why did we land? I have to get back to my sister."

Haku nodded and said. "When I left Yubaba made a deal with me. You and your family can go free if you complete a task. I'm not sure what but it will be difficult."

I nodded. Something popped into my head. The river system is called the ko system. Kohaku? I thought "My sister told me something before I left. She almost drowned in a river but it saved her. She said you reminded her of it and I just remembered its name. It was Kohaku." I hesitated before continuing. "I think your name is the Kohaku river."

Haku stood there for a moment before smiling. He picked me up and spun me around while laughing. "My name. You figured out my name." He cried. I couldn't help but to laugh with him.

We stood there for a moment before I realized how close we were. I pulled away and blushed. "We should probably get going. I don't even want to think about what Yubaba is doing to my sister."

Haku nodded and then we were off.


End file.
